By Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly editor 
With the Major League Baseball trade deadline inching closer, Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Jeremy Hellickson seems to be the main trade chip in addition to guys like Peter Bourjos, Jeanmar Gomez and perhaps even David Hernandez. One name that hasn't been mentioned is Vince Velasquez. Although a deal would seem unlikely, the Texas Rangers have interest in the Phillies starter.
#Rangers interested in Vincent Velasquez, as I just reported on @MLBNetwork. Price is obviously high. #Phillies
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) July 25, 2016
Philadelphia acquired Velasquez as a part of the deal that sent closer Ken Giles to the Houston Astros. Despite a sore bicep issue in June, Velasquez has remained healthy as a member of the Phillies rotation and has shown that he can pile up strikeouts as well. There have been some growing pains with the 24-year-old right-hander, but he has proven to be a potential rotation piece moving forward. Velasquez is 8-2 with a 3.34 ERA. He's allowed two runs or less in four of his five starts since returning from the disabled list on June 27.
The price for a Velasquez trade would be steep for the Rangers, who already dealt the Phillies a handful of top prospects in the Cole Hamels deal last July. Joey Gallo is the Rangers top prospect followed by outfielder Lewis Brinson, right-handers Dillon Tate and Luis Ortiz along with outfielder Jairo Beras to round out their top five. The Phillies would more than likely demand at least one top-5 prospect and then a top-10 to go along with a lower level prospect and perhaps a big league asset.
The non-waiver trade deadline falls on August 1 this season.
